MLB Player News

Mikolas (shoulder) will throw a bullpen session Sunday, Derrick Goold of the St. Louis Post-Dispatch reports.

Mikolas was scratched from a simulated game Monday due to shoulder issues and his progress remains slow. If he checks out fine following the bullpen session, he could be cleared for game action soon thereafter, keeping him in the mix for the Opening Day roster, though the Cardinals are likely to remain cautious with him after he missed all of last season due to flexor tendon surgery. While it's a positive that his current injury woes aren't related to that issue, it's still certainly not good to see a pitcher battling arm troubles so early in camp.

Corbin threw 20 of 33 pitches for strikes in Saturday's Grapefruit League game against the Marlins while mixing in his changeup and a cutter he's developing, Pete Kerzel of MASN Sports reports.

The veteran southpaw rarely used his changeup last season, throwing it only 5.6 percent of the time, but the Nats would like to see the pitch become a regular part of his arsenal. "We definitely want him to try to use it and get comfortable throwing it," manager Dave Martinez said Saturday. "It is a good pitch for him. Obviously, we've run the numbers and he doesn't throw it enough. So hopefully, once he gets comfortable, he'll start throwing it." Corbin saw his fastball velocity drop last season and he generated fewer whiffs with his slider, leading to his worst statistical season since 2016, so while adding a new pitch or two could help, it's the effectiveness of his staples that will determine how he performs in 2021.

Gallen allowed one hit and one walk while striking out three over three scoreless innings in Saturday's Cactus League game against the Rangers.

Gallen became the first Diamondbacks starter to pitch a second game and progress to three innings. The right-hander told Nick Piecoro of the Arizona Republic that he felt better during his second spring appearance. "I felt under control," Gallen said. "I felt like I had control of all four or five pitches. Still knocking the rust off, but overall I was pleased with how I felt." He threw 46 pitches (31 strikes) Saturday, fewer pitches than in his first appearance while getting more outs. He was particularly pleased with his curveball and changeup.

Oviedo, under consideration for the No. 5 spot in the starting rotation, looked impressive over two innings against the Astros in a "B" game Friday, Zachary Silver of MLB.com reports.

Oviedo, along with the likes of Alex Reyes, Carlos Martinez and John Gant, is being stretched out this spring as manager Mike Shildt evaluates all of them for a potential back-end rotation spot. The 23-year-old had a relatively rough big-league initiation in 2020, pitching to an 0-3 record, 5.47 ERA and 1.38 WHIP across 24.2 innings (five starts), but he opened his career with a pair of promising five-inning, two-run outings and has Shildt's confidence. "He's a guy that clearly helped us last year and has the tools to help us again this year," Shildt said. "Good start to camp in a live setting."

Flaherty impressed while throwing 50 pitches in a "B" game against the Astros on Friday, following a poor showing in his first Grapefruit League start, Zachary Silver of MLB.com reports. "Very favorable," manager Mike Shildt said. "Everything was a lot crisper. Fastball had some good life to it, getting it by guys. Slider on the plate more, breaking out of the hand better."

The right-hander hadn't pulled any punches when describing his performance in Sunday's Grapefruit League opener against the Nationals, labeling his performance that day as "horrible". Consequently, Flaherty's performance Friday amounted to a bit of a sigh of relief, even in the wake of what was just one poor outing. Shildt particularly praised Flaherty's ability to control counts much better than in his debut, when he'd retired just one of eight batters.

Lorenzen gave up three earned runs on three hits over 1.1 innings Friday against Arizona, throwing his fastball around 93 mph, Charlie Goldsmith of The Cincinnati Enquirer reports.

Lorenzen was throwing around 97 mph last season, but is purposefully backing off a little on his fastball and throwing more breaking pitches in order to build up as a starter this season. He's battling with Tejay Antone and Jose De Leon to be the Reds' fifth starter.

Morton will no longer pitch in Saturday's spring game against the Rays after the game was canceled due to inclement weather, Marc Topkin of the Tampa Bay Times reports.

Morton was slated to make his spring debut Saturday, but his start will be pushed back due to rain. It's not yet clear when the 37-year-old will make his first Grapefruit League appearance in 2021.

DeGrom has been named the Opening Day starter for the Mets, Tim Healey of Newsday reports.

Manager Luis Rojas' announcement Saturday came as little surprise, as deGrom is considered one of the top pitchers in the game heading into the 2021 season. The 32-year-old's Opening Day start in 2021 will mark the third consecutive year in which deGrom has started the first game of the season for the Mets. The right-hander posted a 2.38 ERA, 0.96 WHIP and 104:18 K:BB over 68 innings across 12 starts in 2020.

Fried (not injury related) was cleared to return to camp Saturday, Mark Bowman of MLB.com reports.

Fried was away from the team for several days after a "potential exposure" to somebody infected with COVID-19. However, he tested negative several times and will now be able to rejoin the team for workouts. The southpaw will likely complete at least one side session prior to making his spring debut, but he's expected to be ready for Opening Day.

Rogers topped out at 96.2 mph with his fastball while getting three strikeouts with his slider over two scoreless innings in his first game action of the spring Friday, Christina De Nicola of MLB.com reports. "I felt really good," Rogers said during a Zoom call afterwards. "The main thing is all my pitches were working. Felt really good coming out of the hand. The slider had a nice bite to it. I could throw it out of the zone. The changeup had good depth to it. The fastball was riding well in the zone. Overall, felt really good for the first time out."

The southpaw is the front-runner for the Marlins' No. 5 starter job after posting a stellar 30.0 percent strikeout rate and palatable 10.0 walk rate over 28 innings in his big-league debut last year, although Rogers' 6.11 ERA and 1.61 WHIP left a lot of room for improvement. The organization's No. 6 fantasy prospect was a first-round pick in 2017, so there's no questioning his arm talent, and his ability to bring heat from the left side would be an asset in a rotation that is otherwise populated by righties.